Rooftop dining
by Aggie Deneys
Summary: Wally West/Flash and Dick Grayson/Nightwing spend some quality time together.


Disclaimer: These characters aren't mine.

"You know, I never pictured myself eating Chinese takeout at one o'clock in the morning on top of a building in Gotham. Got to say, though, that the gargoyle definitely adds a certain bit of charm." Wally West, aka the Flash, peered at bit closer at the gargoyle on his left as he popped a wonton into his mouth. What was it with Gotham and gargoyles?

"You haven't lived until you've dined with a gargoyle," Dick Grayson, aka Nightwing, commented, a takeout container in hand.

"I can't exactly see this as a Bats approved activity." Wally noticed his best friend only shrug. "I also think I must be the brightest thing for miles."

That remark caused a smile to appear on his friend's face. "Well, the red does standout a bit. Be thankful you are on a rooftop. No one can see you up here."

"Still can't believe he let you wear a yellow cape all those years." The smile grew. "Or those damn short pants and pixie boots. What the hell were you thinking?"

"I was eight. I thought it was cool. Besides, the same could be said about your hood ornaments."

"Yeah, yeah." It was an old conversation, but one that they never seemed to tire of. Maybe because it reminded them of the "good old days." Or at least the days when things just seemed easier. When the bad guys seemed lamer, their stunts less threatening. Before it always seemed to be a bank or jewelry store heist, now it was a good night if the body count remained in single digits. "Anymore Moo Goo Gai Pan left?"

Dick glanced inside one of the containers. "Nope. Got some Kung Pao Chicken left."

Wally motioned for it with his hand. "Next time you say let's catch dinner, I'm choosing the location." His friend only smiled, the smile quickly leaving as something caught his attention on the street below. Wally ate a few bites. If it was anything important, Dick would let him know. After a few seconds, Dick settled back. "So, this is the excitement of a stakeout?" Wally was barely containing his boredom and it had only been twenty-five minutes. How could they do this for hours at a time? He'd go crazy.

"Just be thankful it isn't below freezing or raining or sleeting or gale force winds."

"You guys are just like the post office." The comment earned him another smile. "So, what's Roy up to these days?"

"Leading the Outsiders."

"I thought that was your gig."

"It is. He and I sort of split duties."

"Ah, overextended as usual." Wally ignored the bat glare. Someday he would get the nerve to ask Dick whether Bruce actually gave lessons on how to give the bat glare. Dick had perfected it years ago. Even Tim could do it. Too bad for Dick, the glare had stopped working on him almost as quickly. Well, maybe almost as quickly. There were still times Wally became a little scared of Dick, particularly those times when the glare was combined with the voice. On those occasions Wally knew he had to be careful.

"And you?"

"Touché." They were both overachievers. Wally balanced his life as the guardian of Keystone and Central Cities with life in the JLA. But, he was the fastest man alive. He could add a few more tasks to his list and still have time to relax, do the weekly grocery shopping and the laundry. However, his life paled in comparison to what Dick balanced. Dick seemed to redefine the word "multitask." How Dick could even function at times seemed like a miracle. The man was still at the beck and call of the Bat, tonight being the perfect example. Dick also watched over Bludhaven, a city that made Gotham seem bright and cheery. Whatever made Dick decide to live there remained a mystery to Wally. Then his friend also had the Outsiders. For awhile, he had even worked as a bartender and police officer. Wally felt as if he were lazy.

"So, why are we here again?"

"Batman heard a rumor that Penguin may be acting as the middle man for a large shipment of guns. The source of the rumor is somewhat questionable, but either way, couldn't risk it. We're here. Robin and Batgirl are checking out the docks. Batman's checking with other sources. Huntress is-"

Wally almost choked on the chicken he was eating. "Huntress? She's back?" The woman had a death wish. Her time with the JLA had been short, but she almost made Batman appear human. The only JLA member she had seemed to somewhat tolerate had been Steel.

"She was never gone. She's been working a lot with Canary and Oracle on various assignments. She and Batman are building bridges."

"She's a little intense."

"She's not that bad."

By the tone of Dick's voice, Wally's instincts kicked into high gear. "Oh, man, tell me you didn't sleep with her." His friend blushed. "You did?"

"Just once. We sort of got caught up in the moment."

"Bats must have killed you."

"He doesn't know."

"Yeah, right. Even I know Bats knows everything." Part of Wally wanted to do a bit more teasing, but he noticed Dick had tensed. Obviously the Huntress topic was taboo. He'd save it for another time…and make sure Roy was around. Roy would never let Dick live it down. Then again, Roy probably already knew, but it wouldn't stop his friend from teasing. Roy seemed to live to aggravate. "So, is this thing going to actually go down tonight? I mean, there's what…six of you? Couldn't he give you the night off?"

"Five, and do you even have to ask?"

"I know, I know." Wally sighed. He and Dick had planned to spend the night catching up. They had finally managed to coordinate their calendars so both of them were free. Keystone/Central was in Jay and Bart's capable hands for the night. Correction, Jay's capable hands. Besides, activity in the two cities had been relatively quiet recently. Probably a bad sign. Probably just meant something big was coming.

Dick had noted activity in Gotham and Bludhaven was also quieter than usual. Yet another omen of sorts. Either way, it had seemed like a good time to catch up. All had been set until big ol' Bats decided Nightwing needed to help out. In response, Wally had invited himself along. If something happened, the Flash would be on-hand to help.

"So, how mad was he when he found out I'd be here?" Batman was very protective – anal retentive – when it came to his turf, i.e., Gotham. While it was never stated outright, everyone in the hero community knew to stay out unless specifically invited by someone in the Bat family.

"Yeah…well…"

"You didn't tell him." Damn. Now he would be accused of knowingly violating the unspoken rule.

Dick shrugged again. "As you said, he knows everything. He won't be happy. He'll give me the glare. Life goes on."

"Yeah, and he'll give me sucky JLA assignments as punishment for venturing into his turf. Thanks."

Dick grinned. "You're the one who decided to tag along."

"Yeah, yeah." Wally pondered what the punishment might be. He just hoped he wouldn't be used as a test dummy for various Bat toys. Been there, done that. It sucked because the toys always worked. This was Bruce. Failure wasn't an option.

"How's it working out with John as the resident GL?"

Wally shrugged. "It's okay. He's good. More experienced than Kyle, even though Kyle was getting a lot better, but it's…different. I miss Kyle." He missed having someone else his age in the JLA. Sure, he was the Flash and he could hold his own, but it just seemed a little weird to be hanging out with the "big guys" – Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, J'onn and Aquaman. They had all been part of the league with his uncle Barry, when he himself had been Kid Flash. No matter what they said, he never quite felt as if he were on equal footing. At times it felt like a league within a league. He knew he would never command the same level of respect, at least not amongst them. All of them had memories of him as Kid Flash. For that reason, Kyle had provided a good balance, not just because he was Wally's age, but also because he was a newbie to the hero world. Now, Kyle was gone and there was John.

"Do you know when he's coming back?"

"No. The attack on his assistant really messed him up. He even asked me to use the treadmill to stop the attack. He wasn't too happy when I refused. Guess we should just be thankful John was willing to step in, otherwise we might have ended up with Gardner." Even though technically Guy was still Warrior, Wally knew it wouldn't stop Guy from stating he could be a GL again, too. That was just Guy.

"Thought you liked Gardner."

"I do." Wally smiled absently. "He's sort of like Hal. I'll defend those two no matter what. Hal I can understand. He was sort of like an uncle. You know, like you and Clark. Never quite figured out why I do the same for Guy. But the thought of having to listen to Guy try to outdo Bats and Supes and everyone else, I'm not ready for that." Thinking of Guy made him think again of Roy. Maybe because both men had in-your-face personalities. He switched gears. "So, what'd you getting Lian for her birthday?"

"She's into the whole princess thing right now, so I got her a princess tea party at Disney World. Figured Lian would love it and Roy would hate it. Two gifts in one."

Wally laughed at the image of Roy attending a princess tea party. "Good thinking. Can I chip in?"

Dick glared at him. "Every year the same thing. You know, you could actually think of a gift on your own."

"Yeah, but you have such great ideas."

Dick sighed. "Fine."

Wally mentally checked one item off his to-do list. As he did so, he watched Dick tense again. Leaning over the edge, he noticed the same level of activity as before. How Dick could discern a difference was beyond him. However, like before, Dick relaxed again.

A companionable silence fell between them. After a few minutes, Dick broke the silence. "Tim said Bart talked about you the other day."

"Oh? On the ways he plans to kill me?" Wally tried to keep his voice sounding nonchalant. Why would Bart talk about him? Why would Dick think it was important to mention? What was his cousin up to now?

"Nah, Tim said they were talking about the various heroes, the conversation turned to second generation heroes. You're the only to officially take over his mentor's title."

"Hey, you did the Bat thing for awhile."

"Yeah, but only temporarily. You are the Flash." Not by choice, Wally thought. He'd give it all up if it meant Barry could still be alive. "Anyway, Tim told me that Bart argued you are the best Flash ever, even better than Barry."

"Huh. That's a surprise." It really was. Bart never failed to share his thoughts of Wally's inadequacies with anyone. Then again, Wally knew he did the same with Bart. Maybe he needed to rethink his view on his cousin.

"Yeah, well, then he qualified the statement with a 'for now' because he will eventually 'kick your butt,'" Dick clarified with a smirk.

Or not. Typical Bart. "Now that's more like it." How was it fair that Dick got Tim, a kid who literally worshipped the ground Dick walked on, and he got Bart, his cousin who questioned and doubted every word he said? Then again, Dick had to deal with Bruce. Maybe Bart wasn't so bad.

"How's Linda?"

A smile automatically appeared on his face at the thought of his wife. How had he gotten so lucky to have her actually agree to spend the rest of her life with him? "She's good. She's more content now. Going back to school seems to be agreeing with her. And it's cut down on our arguments. It was starting to get a little tense. I would vent and she would want to share the information with the world. I'd watch what I say and she'd accuse me of not telling her everything." Wally shrugged. "At least now we don't have that problem. I can tell her whatever and not have to worry about it ending up on the nightly news." A sly grin appeared on his face. "So, apart from dating Huntress, anyone else I should know about?"

Another glare. "The Huntress thing was awhile ago. Not yesterday."

"Touchy, touchy. Makes me almost wonder if there's still something there."

"You're starting to sound like Roy."

The banter and conversation continued. Several more times Dick tensed and peered more closely at the happenings below, but each time he eventually relaxed. Soon, the eastern sky had started to show the first hints of the coming morning. Wally zipped to a donut shop, returning with said donuts and coffee. "You got about an hour before the sun comes up. Does he actually think something's going to happen yet?"

"Nah. He actually called it off about two hours ago," Dick admitted, taking a sip of coffee.

Two hours ago… "And we stayed up here because…?"

"It's been too long since I hung out with my friend," Dick answered with a smile.

Wally returned the smile. "Right back atcha, Short Pants." They settled in and watched the sun rise.


End file.
